Pay equity victory in Canada

Canada Post is finally paying up the pay equity money it owes

Ottawa – The Public Service Alliance of Canada and Canada Post have signed a memorandum of agreement that will see long-awaited pay equity cheques begin to be issued in August.

• Questions and Answers on the memorandum of agreement
• Background on the Canada Post pay equity case

“PSAC started this process in 1983 with a complaint to the Canadian Human Rights Commission and has stuck with it through literally hundreds of days of Tribunal hearings and numerous court battles,” says PSAC national president Robyn Benson.  “Now the members are finally going to get what they have deserved for so long.”

More than seven years after a Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruled that current and former Public Service Alliance of Canada members were entitled to retroactive pay equity adjustments and interest the parties have agreed on the details of a process to pay out the money owed. 

When the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal issued its decision in October 2005, Canada Post appealed it the same day.  Finally, in November 2011, the Supreme Court ruled from the bench upholding the Tribunal decision.

Further delays occurred following the Supreme Court ruling when Canada Post announced it would only pay 80% of the interest owing on the pay equity adjustments.  The interest awarded has continued to accumulate to this day.

“PSAC agreed to Canada Post paying 90% of the interest owed so that members could finally see a payout,” says Benson.  “We wanted to get as much as possible but we know there are retired members who really need the money and we didn't want to see even more cheques going to estates.”

Full text on PSAC website here